Star Martial Advancement Method

After breakfast, Jiang Ye put on his Key Class uniform and took the little girl to school.

He had no idea why.

The hyper-aggressive drivers he usually encountered had all turned courteous today, yielding to others one after another.

They were still dozens of yards from the intersection when they spotted him and stopped well in advance to let him pass.

The repeated sight left Jiang Ye feeling a little uneasy.

When he arrived at the school where Jiang Ting studied,

parents dropping off their children all gave Jiang Ye friendly smiles when they saw him, then hurriedly pulled their kids aside to make way.

"Brother, why does today feel a little different?"

Jiang Ting asked, looking a little uncomfortable too.

Jiang Ye ruffled her hair and smiled. "Nothing's different. Go to class."

"Mm-hmm. Bye, Brother."

Jiang Ting waved her little hand and ran into the school.

Jiang Ye turned and headed for Ancheng Third Middle School.

He had actually guessed that it was all because of the Key Class uniform he was wearing.

In most people's eyes, the Key Class usually meant a prominent family background. Every student in the class could get into a Martial Arts University and become someone above the common crowd.

That status alone already placed them above most ordinary people.

When he got to school, Jiang Ye immediately told his martial arts teacher, Cao Feng, that he had broken through to perfection.

"You've finally reached perfection?"

Cao Feng nodded. In his view, Jiang Ye had taken quite a bit longer than he'd expected.

But then again, Jiang Ye only had Primitive Talent.

Breaking through to the peak of his Cultivation Method at this point was already an impressive feat.

"Teacher, what about the next cultivation method?" Jiang Ye asked.

He'd been in the Key Class for quite a while and had long since learned that there were further cultivation methods.

That was exactly why he'd come to ask.

Cao Feng had naturally prepared for this. He held up three fingers.

"Once you've cultivated your method to perfection, you need to practice a refinement method to prepare for Starry Sky Refinement."

"You have three refinement methods to choose from."

"Star Martial Body Tempering Method, Star Martial Foundation Building Method, and Star Martial Advancement Method," Cao Feng said with a faint smile.

Jiang Ye looked curious. "What's the difference between the three?"

He'd heard about all three over the past few days.

But which one should he choose? He had no idea.

"The first two are both Yellow Tier mid-grade," Cao Feng explained. "The last one is Yellow Tier high-grade."

"The Star Martial Body Tempering Method gradually improves your physique by tempering your muscles and bones. The process is relatively slow."

"The Star Martial Foundation Building Method helps you lay a solid foundation. You build it faster than with the first method, but it's more difficult too."

"As for the Star Martial Advancement Method..."

Cao Feng spoke in a serious tone. "It's a more intense method, meant to help you advance. You cultivate faster than with the first two, but it's also the most difficult. It's suited to people with exceptional talent."

Jiang Ye understood.

He hadn't expected the three methods to differ so much.

"All three methods," Cao Feng continued, looking at him, "can break the Life Shackle and help you reach First Break."

"They can even help with breaking through to Second Break."

"The difference is that the Body Tempering Method and Foundation Building Method require more Starry Sky Refinements, while the Advancement Method requires fewer."

Cao Feng continued in an unhurried tone, "Still, I recommend that you choose the Star Martial Body Tempering Method."

"The Star Martial Body Tempering Method?" Jiang Ye mused.

From his teacher's explanation,

the Body Tempering Method was the easiest of the three.

But it also improved you the slowest.

"You have Primitive Talent. Your physique can't compare to those students with Nascent Talent," Cao Feng said, shaking his head. "If you choose a difficult method, just learning the basics could take more than half a year."

"Take the Star Martial Advancement Method, for example. It's Yellow Tier high-grade and requires the fewest Starry Sky Refinements."

"But every time you undergo Starry Sky Refinement, you have to absorb a huge amount of Star Energy to meet its requirements."

"With the efficiency at which someone with Primitive Talent absorbs Star Energy, that's practically impossible."

Cao Feng patiently explained, "By contrast, the Star Martial Body Tempering Method requires more refinements, but you only need to absorb a small amount of Star Energy each time. It's the best fit for you."

Jiang Ye nodded slightly.

"Once you've cultivated these three methods to perfection, are there any differences between them?" Jiang Ye asked.

"Of course there are."

Cao Feng answered frankly. "The Star Martial Advancement Method is Yellow Tier high-grade, after all. It gives you a fifty percent chance of reaching Second Break. The other two give you ten percent and thirty percent, respectively."

"That low?" Jiang Ye exclaimed.

The Star Martial Body Tempering Method only gave him a ten percent chance. That was practically nothing.

Jiang Ye pressed on. "What about reaching First Break?"

Cao Feng replied calmly, "You can basically reach First Break with any of these three methods."

"The Advancement Method and Foundation Building Method both give you a chance of over ninety percent."

"As for the Body Tempering Method, the chance is a little lower, but still over seventy percent."

"Seventy percent?" Jiang Ye furrowed his brow.

By the sound of it, even if he cultivated the Star Martial Body Tempering Method to perfection, there'd still be nearly a thirty percent chance he couldn't reach First Break.

"Breaking the Life Shackle isn't that easy."

Cao Feng shook his head slightly, then continued, "Use the Body Tempering Method as a stepping stone. Once you've cultivated it to perfection, you can start practicing the Advancement Method. That's the safest path for you."

Jiang Ye nodded without arguing.

Those words had truly come from the heart.

But he had other thoughts.

"Thank you for the advice, Teacher."

Jiang Ye looked at him and said, "But I want to try the Star Martial Advancement Method."

"Oh?"

Cao Feng raised an eyebrow, apparently not expecting Jiang Ye to answer that way.

After all, he'd made himself perfectly clear.

Given Jiang Ye's aptitude, the easiest method, the Body Tempering Method, was the best choice.

He considered it for a moment, then said slowly, "I recall you have one free Starry Sky Refinement coming up. You're scheduled for it at the end of this month."

"But if you haven't mastered your method, Starry Sky Refinement won't do you much good."

What he meant was that if Jiang Ye chose the Advancement Method,

he'd essentially be wasting his chance to undergo Starry Sky Refinement this time.

After all, the Advancement Method was difficult. There was no way he could master it in such a short time, which would make the refinement useless.

"I know," Jiang Ye said. "You've made everything clear, Teacher. I understand the risks."

"Mm."

Cao Feng said no more and nodded. "I'll send you the Star Martial Advancement Method shortly."

He'd said all he needed to. There was no point trying to dissuade Jiang Ye further.

It was the student's choice, no matter what he decided.

Still, Jiang Ye had Primitive Talent. And he wanted to choose the Star Martial Advancement Method?

Cao Feng shook his head inwardly. Even among the top ten in the Key Class, few chose this refinement method.

Most people knew their own limits.

But he'd said his piece, and Jiang Ye still insisted on running headlong into that wall.

If he regretted it later, that would be his own problem.

Class One, Grade Twelve.

Not long after Jiang Ye returned to the classroom, his wristband buzzed.

It was the wristband he'd received during the trial. It could receive cultivation methods.

"Buzz~"

Jiang Ye activated the wristband's projection. Besides the Eight Divisions Thunder Sound Fist, another method had appeared on the screen.

"Star Martial Advancement Method." Jiang Ye tapped on the book.

He read through it.

Before long, he'd grasped most of its contents.

"It really is a little difficult." Jiang Ye raised an eyebrow, but wasn't surprised.

The Eight Divisions Thunder Sound Fist was only Yellow Tier mid-grade, yet it was already quite difficult.

Let alone a Yellow Tier high-grade method.

He knew it was difficult, so why charge headlong into that wall?

Jiang Ye had never been so reckless.

He'd made this choice because he already had a certain degree of confidence.

"Time to start cultivating."

Jiang Ye assumed a stance and began practicing according to the book.

Not far away,

E-Class Girl Zhao Qingli's expression shifted. She turned her gaze toward Jiang Ye.

"He actually chose the Advancement Method?"

Zhao Qingli, with her aloof air, shook her head slightly and thought, He's just like that show-off Wang Ziang. Jiang Ye seems honest on the surface, but I guess he's no simple character either.

As the undisputed top student in the grade, even she had only chosen the Foundation Building Method when she first reached perfection in her Cultivation Method.

She'd used the Foundation Building Method as a stepping stone before starting the Advancement Method.

Practice the Advancement Method right away?

In the entire Class One, only a handful of people, Wang Ziang among them, did that.

As far as she knew, Wang Ziang had done it just to show off.

And Jiang Ye?

He had Primitive Talent, yet he dared to do the same.

He was even more of a show-off than Wang Ziang.

"Where does he get the confidence?"

Zhao Qingli watched the handsome young man with curiosity.